Kickin' it on your porch

Porches are fantastic. They let you be surrounded by nature in the comfort of your own home. We now have two functional porches, one in the front of the house and one that comes off the second floor. On the front porch we have a rocking chair, a vintage looking red table and green side-table. I have two hanging flowers and a sun shaped light catcher. We also managed to lock our bikes on the side railing. It's a little tight, but not bad, you can still walk around fine.

We are still in the process of fixing up our upstairs balcony porch. We've put three matching outdoor rugs down and instead of puncturing the new roof with glue or staples to keep them down, we instead put five heavy flower pots down on each corner. We also have a small steel table and two matching chairs to help. It's so nice up there. I can't wait to buy the flowers to go in all the pots, it's going to be beautiful.

My sister and Allen have enjoyed sitting out on the porches, the front one more since it's really not stopped raining until today.

We've really created a couple nice new environments for us to read, enjoy each others company, or to just be close to nature.

Peanut Butter and Jelly

Not since George Washington Carver used peanuts to build the world's first wireless communications network and end World War II has the peanut been in a more powerful position. PB&J is a synergy of epic proportions, a case where the whole is truly much larger the sum of its parts.

Why should those two flavors complement each other so perfectly? And how is it that humanity had the good fortune to stumble upon the combination? Like other great pairings; peanut butter and chocolate, macaroni and cheese, mustard and honey, their discovery was unavoidable. Like two elementary particles entangled across the far reaches of space, their mutual attraction is an immutable constant. If we didn't deliver peanut butter into the loving arms of its gelatinous soul mate, someone else, somewhere else would have. And, barring help from other sentient species, PB&J themselves would eventually develop consciousness and find each other, creating a Utopian society based on flavor and texture.

When two compounds with such complementary properties exist, they possess a gravity, slowly pulling each other toward destiny. I'm just glad that peanut butter and jelly chose our reality and our planet to actualize their flavor potential. Our small corner of the universe would be a far poorer place without it.

A Beautiful Couple in Love

Kaitlyn and Joe married yesterday and everything was perfect except that mothernature decided to rain all day and night. They had their ceremony and reception at the beautiful Gramercy Mansion. It was a grand old house that was turned into a bed and breakfast. They had a lovely female perform the vows. The words that were expressed during the ceremony were just amazing. It brought tears to my eyes just witnessing. I hope my wedding is just as beautiful. The dresses were all simply divine. All the bridesmaids were asked to wear any red dress and it was cool how they all expressed such individuallity. Seeing so much of all dad's family back together again was so touching. I'm really glad everyone came up for this event. I want to wish Kaitlyn and Joe a beautiful life together in love. I'll make sure to post some photos of this week once the house clears out.

Keeping Your Options Open

Never close off your mind to opportunity. That's something I try to do even though it often scares me. There's opportunity swirling around you all the time, like money in a cash-grab machine. If you don't reach out and pluck it, you'll never know what you're missing. And here's the beautiful thing. You don't have to feel bad or worthless or lazy or cowardly or any of that other crap if you don't seize the moment. With all that cash whizzing around your face, you'll have plenty of other opportunities. Just snatch the next one. But don't shut off the machine and send it back to the party rental company you got it from...to poorly continue the analogy.

Lately I've been designing websites for Home Improvement contractors in upstate New York and then setting them up with Pay-Per-Click online ad campaigns. It's an opportunity brought to me by my old business partner Robert, who moved his family up there a year ago or so and now sells building supplies. Robert and I used to work together at Renegade. Sometime prior to that he used to hang siding for a living and had always thought about opening up a small side outfit. He came to me because he needed someone to design fliers and advertising mailers. We decided a partnership was the best fit for the situation, and, even though it made me nervous to embark down a path I'd never even known existed, I reached out and grabbed the cash. If I hadn't Robert and I would never would have gotten to be friends and I'd never have been presented with my current opportunity.

I guess what I'm saying is this. Opportunity is everywhere. You'd don't have to dig around for it. It will come to you. You just have to say, "yes" when it does. Unless there's a strongly compelling reason to turn the opportunity away, take it. Sort out the particulars later.

New Perspectives

Exploring different rooms in your home can be so interesting. Jason and I are sleeping in our guest room this week so Kerri, Allen, and Kaiden can have our larger room. We put one of the new ceiling fans in here and we set up the 2nd floor patio that is right off this room. It's also on the quiet side of the house, so no more being woken up by helicopters or ambulances from the hospital down the street. It almost feels like we're on vacation, too. Venturing out and exploring different perspectives of your home or neighborhood can be such a trip. I really recommend it. It was especially cute when my nephews came in to wake me up.

Everyone Arriving Safely

Kate's family is here, after some minor hiccups. Kerri and Allen's flight was delayed a bit, and then forced to sit on the tarmac for about 25 minutes due to lightening. Kate's parents drove up from Myrtle Beach uneventfully. I'm sure plenty of other family has come into town for Kate's cousins wedding and I hope and suspect that their travels have all been successful as well.

I know that, statistically, none of this is unexpected. Most people get where they're going most of the time without event. But that doesn't mean you can't be thankful that this time wasn't any different than every other time, and that outcomes were favorable. And be thankful to live in a country where you ride the positive end of the statistical curve more often than the other end.

Looking forward to a great visit with the fam, and a fun time at the wedding reception tonight. Here's to wishing all positive things for Joe and Kaitlyn!

Home Sweet Home with my Sweetie

I love the relief I feel after cleaning, organizing, and decorating this entire house. It truly feels wonderful to live in a home that finally feels like a real home. I am so proud of Jason and I. We really accomplished so much these past couple of weeks. I love you sweetie and I love the home we've created together.

Quiet Solitary Mornings

Most of the time, I'd rather get up with Kate. But sometimes, especially early in the morning, getting up alone to a quiet house is very nice. Especially on work days. I appreciate the time to be with my thoughts, to get myself prepared, to move slowly and methodically. I like the feeling that somehow you're stealing hours from the day that don't normally exist. Like you're existing in some sort of time bubble, sealed off from a world in suspended animation. A lone consciousness piercing a sleeping planet.

It's why I've always liked arriving really early for work, before anyone else gets in. Leaving proportionally early at the end of the day never seems to work out, though. Probably because the rest of the world is unaware of the extra two or three hours I managed to stash in a 24 hour day.

Of course it's really only special when it happens occasionally. Frequency breeds familiarity, and I'd rather sleep anyway.

DDP is A OK

Diet Dr. Pepper is the nectar of the gods. It's true that Diet Dr. Pepper tastes more like real Dr. Pepper. And what difference exists elevates the flavor of Diet Dr. Pepper above its diabetes-inducing brother. It's the finest non-alcoholic carbonated beverage sentient life has managed to drum up anywhere this side of the Milky Way.

I don't need to comment on that any further. Dr. Pepper's dominance over every known bubbly flavor is self-evident. So of course you'll drink it. Constantly. The real question is, should you drink normal or Diet? Discounting Diet's edge on flavor, normal Pepper's sugar content, delivered by High Fructose Corn Syrup, the worst offender of a bad crew of food additives, should be enough reason to never drink it. It's well known that embibing large amounts of HFCS can lead to diabetes, loss of limbs and worse. Could the aspartame in Diet be causing any ill effects? Sure it could. But those effects aren't known. Which means either we haven't found them yet, or there aren't any. It only makes sense to choose the possibility of no ill effects over well-known and serious potential problems.

Fact is, once you drink of the Pepper, you must submit to it completely. Choose wisely.

High School Dramas

I really like old High School based TV dramas, like My So Called Life, Felicity, and Freaks and Geeks. I don't really watch any of the current ones, but I could go back and watch the ones I just mentioned over and over again. The writing can be somewhat cheesy at times, but usually their pretty realistic in portraying your teenage angst years. Recently I started re watching My So Called Life, with Angela played by Claire Danes, the dorky and sweet Brian Krakow, and of course the musician bad boy Jordan Catalano played by the smokin' hot Jared Leto. The writing and acting are superb. It was so shocking when it was canceled after only one season. Here's one of the most alluring scenes, it makes me miss the butterflies you get when the guy you liked in High School finally acknowledges you. Sometimes I miss those moments.

Hearing my nephews talk

I love hearing my nephews talk to me over the phone. Yesterday was Blake's 2nd birthday and I wished him a happy birthday over the phone and heard him say my name and everything. Both of them are growing up so fast. I truly can't wait to meet them again in person in a couple days and hear them face to face. I hope we become instant friends again. I love you both very much. Happy Birthday Blake. See you both in a couple of days. I will share some new photos of them with you all once they get here.

Another Case of Extremes

There's almost nothing better, after a long day of sweating and getting coated in dirt and plaster dust, than taking a shower and getting off all the grit. It's another case of extremes amplifying each other. You don't really appreciate getting clean until you've been really, really grimy. I'll give a shout out to my peeps in the middle ages. They know what I'm talking about.

And speaking of extremes, we made so much progress on the house this weekend. It really finally feels like a home, and not a constant construction zone. And we appreciate the difference. A lot. If any of you ever want to take a look and come hang out for a while, shoot us an email. It's an open invitation (except to you readers we don't know — you'll need to pass a two-hour screening process and a thorough background check before entering the premises. Please bring an exhaustive family tree, cross-referenced with disease and crime histories...and be welcome.)

Our first visitors will be arriving this Wednesday. Kate's parents, sister, brother-in-law and two nephews are coming into town. Can't wait, guys!